Dec 4, 2013 - Scottish Energy Minister Fergus Ewing today said the UK government’s offshore renewables ambitions were still too low and expressed worries regarding the strike prices for wind farms on Scottish Islands.
Today the British government revealed the strike prices for all renewables energy technologies till 2019. It lifted the offshore wind strike price for 2018/19 from the GBP 135 (USD 221/EUR 162.6)/MW in a draft proposal from June to GBP 140/MWh after evidence that the offshore wind costs in the draft Delivery Plan were falling too quickly. For the preceding years the rate is GBP 155 per MWh for 2014/15 and 2015/16, followed by GBP 150/MWh for 2016/17 and GBP 140/MWh for 2017/18. For wave and tidal power the rates are GBP 305/MWh for both technologies and for all five years. According to Fergus Ewing, there still exists the risk that that level of support would not be enough to build capacity in the supply chain and lure the necessary inward investment to Scotland. “I am concerned that Scotland and the UK are forfeiting the opportunity to develop this industry – thus losing out on jobs and investment,” he said.
In September the British government proposed a strike price of GBP 115 per MWh for onshore wind parks for the Scottish Islands, a 15% premium over mainland projects. The proposal aimed to encourage the development of wind farms on the Scottish islands of Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles. In today’s statement the price of GBP 115/MWh has been kept and is applicable for projects that commence power generation in 2017/18 or 2018/19. Ewing said that the UK government has not taken into account the demands of project developers and the Scottish government when determining the rates. “While the provision of dedicated support represents progress, the UK Government continues to ignore their own research which points to the need for different levels of support across the three main island groups,” the Energy Minister said.
Ewing said he would pursue “urgent discussions” with the Treasury on the above mentioned points.
Apart from raising slightly offshore wind strike prices, the UK government also boosted support for hydropower, a move previously sought by Ewing, and geothermal power. However it reduced preferential rates for onshore wind and large-scale photovoltaics (PV).
(GBP 1 = USD 1.637/EUR 1.204)
Choose your newsletter by Renewables Now. Join for free!
